Chapter 2232 Shazhou
Arriving at the city gate, Steward Li immediately trotted forward to hand over their official documents and travel permits, then bowed and apologized to the soldiers already lined up at the gate. "Our young lady has been walking in the desert for over ten days. Suddenly seeing a big city, she got a little excited. Please forgive me, please forgive me."
The lieutenant commander guarding the city gate flipped through their documents and discovered they were on official business. His expression improved considerably, and with Steward Li's compliments, he reluctantly forgave their recklessness. He waved the soldiers away and then checked their official documents and travel permits. "Are you planning to leave the city?"
"Yes, we are going to the Western Regions."
The lieutenant general frowned and said, "It's not easy to go outside the pass now. It's a bit chaotic. If you want to leave, you have to go to General Meng to get a certificate. If it's too dangerous, the general may not allow you to leave."
Bai Shan, who was riding on his horse, dismounted upon hearing this and asked, "Then the merchants from the Western Regions coming east, and the merchants from the Central Plains going west, will also be unable to enter or leave the customs?"
"You can leave," the lieutenant general looked up at him and said, "Private entry and exit of the checkpoint is not prohibited."
"Then why can't an official do that?"
"Because if an official gets into trouble outside the pass, our general will have to send troops to rescue him."
Merchants entering and leaving the pass are seeking wealth and fame in dangerous situations, and they should be aware of this before making a decision. If the garrison at Yumen Pass encounters them, they will naturally rescue them, but if they don't, they will not go out of their way to rescue them.
But it is different for officials. Not to mention that there will be any requirements from the court, even for the sake of the prestige of the Jin Dynasty and the friendship between colleagues, they have to send troops to rescue as soon as they receive the news.
But the land outside is vast, the marching distance is uncertain, and the cost is very high.
Therefore, for the safety of life and property, it is best not to leave the country.
He flipped through the paperwork, stamped it, and handed it back to them. "Go in."
Steward Li took it respectfully and asked casually, "Sir, how do I get to the post station in Shazhou City?"
The lieutenant general looked him up and down, then turned to look at Bai Shan. Seeing the delicate dark patterns on his sleeves, he perked up and asked, "Are you going to stay at the post station?"
Bai Shan didn't know what was wrong with this. They were on official business, so where else could they stay if they didn't live at the post station?
So he nodded.
The lieutenant general pointed towards the city and said, "Go inside, turn right at the third intersection, and walk down to the bottom. You'll find it there. There's a plaque on it."
After the lieutenant general finished speaking, he smiled, showing his two rows of teeth and said, "If you don't want to stay at the post station, the inn next door is also good."
It was not until Bai Shan and his companions followed the general's instructions and reached the end that they truly understood what he meant.
The more than one hundred people in the audience were all shocked and fell into silence for a moment.
Manbao was riding on her horse, craning her neck to look at the plaque of the post station. Perhaps she felt that her hat blocked her vision, so she pushed her hat up and blinked, but the post station in front of her remained unchanged. Half of the door was still patched with wooden strips, and the words on the plaque were a little blurry. Looking inside from the door, the whole post station had two floors, but... it looked gray and very shabby.
Manbao couldn't help swallowing. Seeing that they were still not leaving, the waiter who was sitting on a small stool inside couldn't help but stand up, walked to the door to look at them, and asked hesitantly, "Do you want to stay at the hotel?"
Everyone's eyes immediately fell on him.
The waiter was startled. Seeing more than a hundred people staring at him, he hid back and pointed to the inn next door and said, "If you want to stay in a hotel, you can go to the inn across the street. The rooms there are nice."
Bai Shan looked at him deeply and asked, "Can't people live in the post station?"
The waiter hesitated and said, "Of course, but do you want to stay here?"
Manbao said, "We are officials."
The waiter understood instantly and pointed to the inn across the street, saying, "Your Excellencies can stay there. Officials staying at the post station get only a 20% discount, and they also provide free hot water and soup."
Manbao emphasized: "We stay at the post station for free."
Bai Erlang and the others also jumped out of the carriage. After taking a quick look around the post station, they sighed, "This post station is comparable to the abandoned ones on the Liangzhou grasslands."
It’s just that those post stations were on the grassland, and the people in the post stations had already evacuated, so they became so deserted. But this one is in Shazhou City.
Manbao pursed his lips and looked at the waiter seriously, "Where is your postmaster?"
Although the waiter had been at the post station for several months, this was the first time he had encountered someone staying there, especially with so many people. The guards and soldiers looked menacing, and he was frightened just by the sight. Without any concealment, he pointed at the gate across the street where people were still living, and almost cried out, "Our postmaster is across the way."
Just as he finished speaking, the commotion here had already attracted the attention of the other side. A waiter from the opposite inn, who had arranged for the new guests, immediately ran out to greet them. He ran to the front of the inn, Manager Li, and greeted him with a smile: "Are you staying in the inn? Our inn is more spacious. Why don't you come and have a look?"
Manbao and Baishan looked down at him, then glanced past him at the shrinking clerk, snorted coldly, and asked, "Where's your boss?"
The waiter's smile froze. "Guests, are you looking for our boss? Our boss is not here. If you have any requests, you can tell us."
Bai Shan and Man Bao didn't say anything, and the situation was frozen for a moment.
Mr. Zhuang knocked on the carriage, and the two men came to their senses, immediately dismounted and walked back to wait outside the carriage, "Sir..."
Mr. Zhuang said, "Since you can't make up your mind, let's go to the post station first. Leave your luggage on the car and unload it when you've made up your mind. You can take a look inside."
Bai Shan and Man Bao were certain. With the master as their backer, they no longer felt that they were fighting or causing trouble. They simply waved their hands and said, "Let's go into the post station."
The innkeeper opened his mouth slightly, and quickly reached out to stop them, subconsciously saying, "You, you can't go in..."
Nie's soldiers raised their eyebrows, raised their swords, and shouted, "How dare you disrespect the Lord!"
The guy was startled and withdrew his hand. Bai Shan glanced at him, reached out and took Manbao in.
The post station attendant didn't dare to stop them, but his mouth dropped open. Seeing their guards approaching to remove the threshold, he immediately came to his senses and hurried to help. After the carriages were led into the courtyard, he remembered that they seemed to be entering through the side door...
The guy scratched his head and before he had time to think about these things, he hurried to lead Bai Shan and the others, but...
He himself didn't know where to lead people. There was not even any bedding in the house, but fortunately it was clean. It just smelled musty, as if no one had lived there for a long time.
Bai Shan touched the table with his fingers and asked the embarrassed waiter, "Who cleans these rooms?"
He immediately bowed and said, "Yes, it's mine."
Bai Shan nodded and asked, "What's your name?"
"Little Ren Ergou."
Bai Shan couldn't help laughing, but he suppressed his smile and nodded, saying seriously, "What a nice name."
The guy's face turned red with excitement.
See you at 6pm
(End of this chapter)
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